(S) Go north through a wide opening/seating area and straight on along a footpath through the churchyard, soon past St Mary's Church to your left hand side. Immediately over the bridge turn right, signed "Chiltern Heritage Trail". The river is now on the right and the wall of the cemetery is to the left.
(1) Follow the path to the end of the wall, where it starts to climb and comes out into a field. Turn left along a path, signed Martyr’s Memorial, climbing steeply upwards and part diagonally right across the field. At the top of the climb go straight on onto a signed narrow path between high garden fences and steep downhill. The path comes out sharply onto the busy Station Road (A416).
(2) Cross straight over with care and directly onto another narrow path - this time climbing between fences. At the top, where the path is crossed by another, go straight on. This leads out onto a residential road, called Stanley Hill Avenue, and next to a small green. Go straight on along the pavement, keeping the green to the left and crossing over to the left-hand pavement soon after passing the green.
(3) On reaching the T-junction, turn left into Stanley Hill (A404), staying on the left-hand pavement. At a traffic junction turn left under the railway bridge, then turn right at the roundabout to cross over into Raans Road (at 1.25 miles).
(4) Follow Raans Road, staying on the left-hand pavement, eventually past an industrial estate on the right. When the pavement turns left, following what seems to be the main road (Quill Hall Lane), stay straight on past this road to your left hand side, staying with Raans Lane and soon over the railway.
The lane leads to Raans Farm. Soon the road divides, stay left past two houses to the right hand side, then veer right, keeping the farm to your left and past it to a gate.
Go straight on through the gate along an enclosed track. The track is an unsurfaced old lane which leads to a wood named Chiltern Forest. Soon after entering the forest, the path divides (at 2 miles), take the right fork to follow a path through the forest - at points you will see fields away to your right hand side.
After 0.6 miles the path climbs steeply and comes out into a small cul-du-sac. Go straight on past Forest Cottages and to a T-junction with Bell Lane.
(5) Cross straight over and back into the forest now named West Wood, although the signs still say Chiltern Forest. Take the track to the left, signed Public Footpath, past a wooden barrier and downhill and through the woods. After another 150 yards take a narrow path to the left.
NOTE: As a rule of thumb, always stay left, but inside the wood. The narrow path weaves its way thru’ the wood at times borders on the very left hand side of the wood.
After another 450 yards stay left steeply downhill to a metal kissing gate. Go through the gate into a field and stay left along its left hand side edge and downhill (at 3 miles). After 170 yards, where the edge of the field turns left, go straight on following the path diagonally across the field to its bottom right-hand corner.
Exit the field, through a metal kissing gate, cross straight over the road (Latimer Road) then go through a wooden kissing gate, signed public footpath, and straight across a field.
(6) Exit the field to a lane/driveway and go straight on to cross a bridge over the River Chess. Follow the driveway around to the right and uphill. The driveway leads to a wooden gate with a kissing gate to the right of it. Go through the kissing gate and turn left along a road, past the entrance to Latimer Place (or Latimer House).
After another 75 yards, turn right, through a wooden gate / gap in a low metal fence, signed Chess Valley Walk. NOTE: this may now just be signed public footpath as the Chess Valley Walk has been diverted to a permissive path south of Latimer Place. However, it is still marked as an alternative route for Chess Valley Walk on the walk's guide.
The narrow path doubles back along the opposite side of the metal fence for just a few yards and then turns left, through trees, then a wooden gate and across a field. At the opposite side of the field the path goes along a high hedge, soon between houses and descends to a road (Church Lane) in the heart of Latimer Village.
(7) Turn left and downhill, keeping the small green to your right hand side. At the bottom, at T-junction, turn left along road (Flaunden Hill). This road is narrow and has little traffic, but still take care as there is no pavement. After 350 yards and shortly after Home Farm turn right onto a wide enclosed track, signed Public Bridleway 5, Flaunden 1.5 (that's miles), with a field to the left and a wood to the right.
After 100 yards turn left and continue to climb uphill between a fence and hedgerow to Long Wood. To the left on the climb are good views over the narrow valley to the fields beyond. On entering the woods continue straight on following a wide bridleway (at 4 miles) - do not take the bridleway to the right and do not be tempted to turn off the main path when opportunities arise.
(8) After half a mile follow the bridleway as it turns right and changes to a track / restricted byway. After another 220 yards stay straight on past a turn to the right. The track soon veers left then right and towards a transmission mask. Within a short distance, with some outbuildings to your right hand side, turn left onto a wider track. Stay straight on along this enclosed track for 0.45 miles to the village of Flaunden.
(9) On approaching the village, the spire of Flaunden church is visible above the hedgerow. The track leads to a road on the edge of the village – the church is to the left and the Green Dragon pub in front. Turn right past the pub and through the village.
Continue through the village to a crossroads. Cross straight over and soon exit the village as the road begins to descend. 350 yards after the crossroads, stay with the road as it veers left and still downhill to a T-junction of roads.
(10) Cross straight over the road and go through a wooden kissing gate, signed The Chiltern Way, and onto a path/track into a wood (Lower Plantation). Follow the track/path straight through the wood. After almost half a mile, exit the wood through a wooden kissing gate (at 6 miles) onto a lane (Holly Hedges Lane), turn right along this lane signed Hertfordshire Way. NOTE: We have now joined the Hertfordshire Way and follow for the next 0.8 miles to Windmill Hill. It is waymarked and thus is easy to follow.
We soon pass an isolated house on the left, and after 175 yards, stay straight on along the lane, past a public bridleway going into woods to left hand side.
After another 150 yards, where the lane turns sharp right, turn left at a metal barrier onto a footpath (signed Hertfordshire Way). Stay straight on through the woods (Woodman's Wood) - take the middle path. After 170 yards the path veers right, then left. Soon after stay straight on past a crossing bridleway. After another 450 yards out into the corner of a field. Go straight on along the left hand side of the field and gradually downhill to exit the field, by a stile next to a gate onto a road (Dunny Lane).
(11) Cross over with care and turn left, along the pavement. and after 85 yards, turn right into Windmill Hill. Almost immediately, turn right onto a narrow gravel path going uphill and into the trees. We have now entered Chipperfield Common on a permissive bridleway.
NOTE: If for any reason access to the permissive bridleway is withdrawn, you can still get to the next instruction by following the Hertfordshire Way. To do this continue up Windmill Hill on the road for 260 yards. Then at a drive to a house, veer slightly right signed "Public Footpath to Kings Langley". After 110 yards veer left to rejoin our route where it says "We have rejoined the Hertford Way ..." below.
40. After 280 yards, and at the top of the hill, take the right fork. We have rejoined the Hertfordshire Way and follow it for 1100 yards to a pond (Apostles' Pond).
(12) At the Apostles' Pond, turn left along a path keeping the pond to your left hand side, following "easy access route, local path no.8". (We have now left the Hertfordshire Way, but will cross paths again at St Albans and Hertford). At a fork stay straight on avoiding path branching off left. Then after another 140 yards stay straight on avoiding crossing tracks.
(13) After another 240 yards the path comes out between a car park to your right hand side and Chipperfield Cricket Ground to your left hand side. Stay along the edge of the cricket ground (at 8 miles) and then straight on, soon past Chipperfield War Memorial, and to finish at a crossroads next to the Two Brewers Inn.(E)
